The entire globe is being impacted by the coronavirus. It’s hard to be cheerful when you imagine the loss, suffering, and overwhelm many are feeling. How do you cope?

I cope with these types of situations by keeping my head, following guidelines from trusted resources, and doing all I can to maintain a sense of normalcy in these insane times.

The American spirt is something hard to quantify, particularly if you are not from here. It is facing hardship and finding your way through. It is doing for others who are worse off than you. It is fighting through whatever comes our way, and learning that if we all work together, we will succeed. Since our declaration of independence from the British Empire 243 years ago, we have survived wars, depression, political strife, including Presidential assassinations, impeachments, and all the rest. Each time this country goes through something, we always come out stronger than we were before.

When times get tough, we naturally get tougher. I’m thankful to be an American and proud of all the people who are putting themselves at risk for the sick, the people and companies who are contributing to the effort to curtail the effects of this virus, and just going out of their way to help and contribute to the well-being of others.

Do we have our share of knuckleheads? Sure. Hoarding, ignoring guidance, and all the rest. The majority of us are, however, doing all we can to help our neighbor and do our part. This is the American spirit that wins over diversity, strife, and disaster, over and over and over. I am grateful for that.

Today, I send good thoughts to all who are suffering, afraid, and feeling helpless and stressed. We will overcome this thing, like we have everything else.